Reproductive behaviour of women experiencing marital disruption: findings from a Mediterranean country

Silvia Meggiolaro, Università di Padova
Fausta Ongaro, Università di Padova

This paper studies the reproductive behaviour of Italian women who underwent a marital dissolution, using data updated to 2003. Two aspects are investigated: the demographic determinants of childbearing following marital disruption and the effect of marital history interruption on women’s cumulated fertility. Results of event history analysis models show that the factors most strongly associated with the risk of a post-dissolution birth are both the number and age of a woman’s youngest child and her repartnering behaviour. Detailed analyses of the effect of marital history interruption on women’s cumulated fertility showed that it is differentiated according to their subsequent repartnering behaviour.